Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

First, I think the Deputy is misrepresenting the decision to abolish dairy quotas, when that was made as part of a Common Agricultural Policy reform quite a number of years ago. I stand over that decision; it was the right decision at the time and it is the right decision now. Many dairy farms in Ireland were operating in a straitjacket, unable to fulfil their potential in terms of their dairy herds, and the vast majority of dairy farmers who have grown productivity and production since then have done so in a sustainable manner. Some have grown too quickly; that is true. Of course, farmers themselves, and dairy farmers in particular, recognise they have a unique responsibility to protect water quality and watercourses. I would suggest that the Deputy, if she has not done so, although maybe she has, take a look at the water basin project in the Timoleague catchment area to see how it can be done, where water quality is not disimproving and where dairy farms have grown and expanded to their potential.

I believe in sustainability in the context of protecting the environment, ecosystems and water courses but also in financial sustainability for farm families across the country, all 130,000 of them, and the State needs to support them from a policy point of view and from a financial point of view when appropriate. It is true that agriculture, farming and farm families have to respond to our environmental challenges, as other sectors do as well. They are setting about doing that and the Deputy should recognise that in this House rather than constantly pointing at them as the problem. They are doing many things to reduce the impact of farming on the environment, whether it is grassland management, increased clover or reducing chemical fertilisers. It is perhaps noting in this House that the amount of chemical fertiliser used in Ireland reduced by 15% last year and again this year by another estimated 15%. That is, in two years, a 30% reduction in chemical fertilisers and, of course, there has also been a much more targeted application of pesticides and herbicides.

We need to continue on that journey with farmers and work with them on it rather than lecture them about the problems they are causing, and then we may get a more positive response from the farming sector even than has been given already. We have seen, for the first year in many, a reduction in the emissions coming from the agricultural sector over the past 12 months and that is going to accelerate into the future.

We have a Teagasc plan that we know can deliver a 17% to 19% reduction in emissions from the agricultural sector between now and 2030, and we have set a target to get to 25%. Farmers are up for that, despite knowing it is a big challenge. Perhaps the Deputy could maybe recognise what many of her constituents are already doing to protect the environment, rather than focusing solely on the problems. Water course protection is really important and water quality is important. Trends are moving in the wrong direction in certain areas and farming and agriculture need to respond to that but they need to do it with the support of government rather than the criticism.

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